Australian labour market adjustment to technology, trade and policy. This project aims to examine how the Australian labour market has adjusted over the past 30 years to several major developments: increased use of computers, growth in international trade and the mining boom, microeconomic reform, and the expansion of higher education. The analysis is designed to encompass the effect on labour market outcomes including workers’ pay, the skill composition of employment, migration flows and indivi ....Australian labour market adjustment to technology, trade and policy. This project aims to examine how the Australian labour market has adjusted over the past 30 years to several major developments: increased use of computers, growth in international trade and the mining boom, microeconomic reform, and the expansion of higher education. The analysis is designed to encompass the effect on labour market outcomes including workers’ pay, the skill composition of employment, migration flows and individuals’ decisions about acquiring education. Having a richer understanding of how the labour market has adjusted in the past may help policy-makers to infer how adjustment will happen in the future. For example, a better understanding of the effects of new technologies would provide a stronger basis for judging trends in job creation and hence the types of skills and training that will be required in Australia in future years.Read moreRead less
Modelling the Diffusion of Innovation in Marketing Research. This project will identify and explain the utilisation of marketing research in Australian organisations. The major (but not exclusive) focus will be the diffusion of Internet-based marketing research innovations. Previous studies of marketing research have been limited, through focussing on only one sector (such as tourism) or aspect of usage, or by using small samples, or by excluding important Internet innovations or managerial eval ....Modelling the Diffusion of Innovation in Marketing Research. This project will identify and explain the utilisation of marketing research in Australian organisations. The major (but not exclusive) focus will be the diffusion of Internet-based marketing research innovations. Previous studies of marketing research have been limited, through focussing on only one sector (such as tourism) or aspect of usage, or by using small samples, or by excluding important Internet innovations or managerial evaluations. This project will investigate the diffusion of marketing research across many industrial sectors, over several years. The project will yield "benchmarking" benefits of immediate value, and enduring benefits through the continuing evaluation of innovative research practices.Read moreRead less
Exploring Consumers' Switching and Loyalty Behaviours: Brand Relationship Dynamics. For marketers and academics, understanding the ways that consumers develop relationships with brands is of utmost importance. Brands may inspire loyalty, repeat purchases, continued use, and switching behaviour over time. Yet, continued brand usage and switching behaviours have not yet been studied systematically from a relationship perspective. Fournier's (1998) perspective on brand relationships is used to unde ....Exploring Consumers' Switching and Loyalty Behaviours: Brand Relationship Dynamics. For marketers and academics, understanding the ways that consumers develop relationships with brands is of utmost importance. Brands may inspire loyalty, repeat purchases, continued use, and switching behaviour over time. Yet, continued brand usage and switching behaviours have not yet been studied systematically from a relationship perspective. Fournier's (1998) perspective on brand relationships is used to understand changes in brand behaviours as changes in underlying consumer-brand relationships. This study, using qualitative semi-structured interviews and longitudinal brand diary keeping, will uncover the personal, social, and cultural meanings associated with brand-related changes, significantly advancing our understanding of brand relationship dynamics.
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Modelling Consumer Decision States. This research will examine the evolution of consumer decision states as products/categories mature and investigate how choice experiments can be developed to predict new product choices. Technological developments have made it feasible to expose large numbers of respondents to choice experiments enhanced with a process of Information Acceleration. A longitudinal experimental approach is proposed that monitors consumers' awareness, consideration and choice for ....Modelling Consumer Decision States. This research will examine the evolution of consumer decision states as products/categories mature and investigate how choice experiments can be developed to predict new product choices. Technological developments have made it feasible to expose large numbers of respondents to choice experiments enhanced with a process of Information Acceleration. A longitudinal experimental approach is proposed that monitors consumers' awareness, consideration and choice for one mature and two new products. This will allow for the developing of models that take into account the different rates at which consumers progress through decision states, leading to improved forecasts of new product trial and adoption.Read moreRead less
Can commerce be authentic? Developing and testing consumer-based measures of brand authenticity. Academics and practitioners identify the management of brand authenticity as a critical success factor in building brand equity. Significant opportunities exist for Australian firms to benefit from application of a brand authenticity scale in the development of brand communication strategies. In particular, small firms where reputation can be built on an authentic connection to family or regional his ....Can commerce be authentic? Developing and testing consumer-based measures of brand authenticity. Academics and practitioners identify the management of brand authenticity as a critical success factor in building brand equity. Significant opportunities exist for Australian firms to benefit from application of a brand authenticity scale in the development of brand communication strategies. In particular, small firms where reputation can be built on an authentic connection to family or regional history; tourism organisations where consumption is driven by authenticity; or exporters of local brands where perceptions of what is authentically Australian are critical. It is also significant for sports organisations where the opportunity to self-authenticate is a major motivation for consumers whether spectator or participant.Read moreRead less
Economic stress, non-cognitive skill development and life outcomes. This project aims to identify policies in which the fostering of non-cognitive skills (NCS) can break the persistence of economic disadvantage. The project seeks to investigate the mechanisms behind differential development, intergenerational transmission of NCS between "rich and poor," how exposure to economic stress inhibits NCS development and the role of schooling in boosting NCS of disadvantaged children. Expected outcomes ....Economic stress, non-cognitive skill development and life outcomes. This project aims to identify policies in which the fostering of non-cognitive skills (NCS) can break the persistence of economic disadvantage. The project seeks to investigate the mechanisms behind differential development, intergenerational transmission of NCS between "rich and poor," how exposure to economic stress inhibits NCS development and the role of schooling in boosting NCS of disadvantaged children. Expected outcomes include evidence-based policy advice on how human capital investments in NCS can be beneficial for health, educational and labour market success, and how NCS can survive despite economic stress. Intended benefits include new cost-effective policies to reduce inequality and maximise the welfare of society.Read moreRead less
Heterogeneity, Wage Inequality, Unemployment, and Economic Growth. This project would provide the first internally consistent theory of wage inequality, unemployment and economic growth - and the roles that government policy variables play in determining them. It would use and extend frontier developments in theory, and identify the settings of policy variables (unemployment insurance, tax structures, education policies) that maximise social welfare, given that governments must satisfy their bud ....Heterogeneity, Wage Inequality, Unemployment, and Economic Growth. This project would provide the first internally consistent theory of wage inequality, unemployment and economic growth - and the roles that government policy variables play in determining them. It would use and extend frontier developments in theory, and identify the settings of policy variables (unemployment insurance, tax structures, education policies) that maximise social welfare, given that governments must satisfy their budget constraints. It also aims to uncover the relationship between the innate abilities of workers and their education choices - and the consequences for macro economies and public policy.Read moreRead less
The effect of competition and doctor heterogeneity on prices charged by doctors. Prices charged by doctors can have important effects on health care costs, access to health care and health status. This research will examine the determinants of prices charged by doctors. The results will be important in understanding the pricing practices of doctors and their impact on health care costs.
A New Approach to Information-Based Securities Trading. This project develops and tests a new approach to information-based securities trading, which can effectively describe trading dynamics and accurately measure the effects of information impounded in price and trading activities. It aims to provide a novel and practical framework for studying information asymmetry, belief heterogeneity and asset pricing, and apply the new approach to address a series of financial issues. The project will mak ....A New Approach to Information-Based Securities Trading. This project develops and tests a new approach to information-based securities trading, which can effectively describe trading dynamics and accurately measure the effects of information impounded in price and trading activities. It aims to provide a novel and practical framework for studying information asymmetry, belief heterogeneity and asset pricing, and apply the new approach to address a series of financial issues. The project will make significant contributions to finance research by shedding new insights on market dynamics and creating a new stream of models and modelling techniques. Academics, practitioners and regulators can use the new approach to better analyse the Australian financial market and improve its efficiency.Read moreRead less
The socioeconomic determinants and dynamics of mental health and disorders in Australia and the United Kingdom: evidence from childhood to the elderly years. Poor mental health and specific mental disorders are prevalent in Australia, and have severe consequences for the social and economic functioning of individuals, families and communities. This project will shed new light on the long-term socio-economic determinants and dynamics of mental health, using data that tracks individuals over time.